In Sickness and Health
by PersonaOfBetrayal
Summary: [Post X-2] The finals of the Luca blitzball tournament was something that Yuna had been looking forward to. However, when she mysteriously falls sick the night before the anticipated event, what is Tidus to do? Is the tournament reward as valuable as your lover's happiness? TxY fluff, One-shot


**In Sickness and Health**

_**A Tidus/Yuna short story**_

* * *

It seemed like it would be a perfectly ordinary night. Nothing had been particularly wrong or out-of-place at the time when they retreated to their quarters, nor when they were peacefully wrapped up in each other's arms; sinking into the spongy mattress after exchanging their batches of sweet nothings. The night had been silent; the stars cruising over the cottage of two, the gibbous moon sprinkling beams across the island of Besaid…

The night continued, but her sleep was shattered by a wretched sensation in her throat. Wriggling desperately out of her companion's tauntingly warm arms, she scuttled for the nearby bathroom and hurled violently into the water, wobbly knees collapsing.

She couldn't find the strength or will to move from her position and the one left behind, ever the light sleeper, was already woken up from the commotion. He rubbed at his eyelids, trailing his lover to where she lay, hunched over and breathing irregularly.

"Yuna?" Tidus was now fully awake, slowly approaching her while lowering himself to her level. "Are you okay?"

She slowly turned to face him; her skin sickly pale and her cheeks dampened with tears, and soundlessly shook her head. The queasiness had subsided for now, but how long would that last? She sniffled before being helped up onto her feet, an arm draped over her shoulders as she was guided back to their bed.

Under the covers once again, Yuna lay facing the direction of the bathroom, Tidus spooning her just in case she needed to go again. He traced his fingers over her face, which was both boiling and freezing in different places. He sighed sadly, unsurprisingly worried for his lover's health. "Try getting some sleep, all right? Wake me if you need to."

Humming, she wormed backwards towards his bare chest, the bug in her stomach having yet to erupt. She had no idea how she was going to fall back into slumber this time around. Not even Tidus calmed her nerves. No sleep meant the inability to get up in the morning, , or even the afternoon, making it all the more difficult to deal with her situation…

Then it hit her. The one day she couldn't afford to sleep in.

"Tidus, the tournament!"

"I know," he tilted his head downwards towards her hairline. Yuna had been looking so forward to seeing him play in the blitzball finals this year. Rather, just watching him play and show off to the audience his various stunts and techniques. If she wasn't fit enough by tomorrow morning… all that excitement would have been for naught. "Just see how you feel tomorrow. You might still be able to go, right?"

"I hope so," she mumbled, managing a weak smile at his optimism before a fit of coughs forced it down.

After a few moments Tidus drew a long and concerned sigh, pecking the top of her head before falling asleep again, his grip on Yuna's waist loosening. As expected, Yuna didn't have as easy of a time. The growing torture in her throat left her with just a few thoughts: why?

Why did this have to happen to her now?

* * *

"…so I need you to look after her while I'm gone. Probably until tomorrow. Guest room's in the back if you don't wanna use the couch…"

However, Lulu had stopped listening to him a long time ago. She was more interested in, as she set down the large box of supplies and treatments that was given to her, Yuna's ferocious coughing and wheezing as she stumbled into the bathroom once again. Meanwhile, Tidus was still prattling on and giving her pointless reminders about Yuna's preferences, favourite foods, allergies and hobbies, but he grinded to a halt when Lulu raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?"

"Amusing, is it not?" she chuckled dryly. "Ever since you came back, you two did everything together. But if Yuna's illness is as big of a deal as you're making it out to be, wouldn't you rather stay home?"

"I _would_ if I could," he emphasised, setting his sights on Lulu's son, Vidina, who was rolling around on the living-room carpet. "but I can't bail on the finals, you know? Wakka'd use my skin for his blitzballs if I did!"

"It would be too soft," she whispered lowly so that Tidus wouldn't catch it. They heard the sound of flushing water and Yuna emerged from the neighbouring room a few seconds later, wrapped up in a thick blue nightgown. Upon noticing and nearly tripping over the medicine box, she giggled and shook her head. "Speaking of Wakka, do remind him that he's on the earth from time to time. I've seen him and his coaching."

"Sure thing!" he laughed as Yuna walked up to him, lighting squeezing his lower arm.

"Good luck," she said sweetly, kissing him on the cheek as she tried not to let her smile falter. "I would cheer you on more, but…"

"You can go next year," he tried cheering her up, ruffling her hair. Even if she turned out sick again he would still bring her along. He despised seeing her so down like this. He looked towards the clock on the wall. Twenty minutes until his ship departed. "Go back to bed, 'kay? See you later."

"Good luck," Lulu stated just in time before Tidus sprinted out of the house, running down and through the jungle at record speed. How typical of him. She picked up Vidina who had crawled over to her and made sure Yuna got to her bed safe and sound. "Would you like anything?"

"Oh, no thanks, Lulu…" she waved her off, bouncing a couple of times before leaning back into the still-warm pillows. She sighed longingly and clutched her aching stomach, her absence from her lover's blitzball match gnawing at her thoughts and emotions. The older woman rounded the rectangular mattress and situated herself beside Yuna, Vidina's bubbly demeanour never failing to make the sick woman smile.

"Are you sure?" Lulu let her son play around on the squishy covers, folding her hands neatly on her lap. "You're obviously troubled by all of this."

"But—"

"You cannot keep anything from me, Yuna," she clucked, displaying her rare egotism. "The time of secrets is long over for you. You have always confided in me either way."

"…I just feel like I let him down," she reached over to the bedside table, taking a sip of water from the glass that Tidus had left her. The thought of it made her feel more ashamed. "This is a big day for him, and I can't even go to watch him. All because I couldn't take care of myself…"

"These things happen. It's hardly your fault."

"Lulu, I know it is. I've just had these cravings for the strangest foods these past days," she couldn't help but snicker. She fondly recalled Tidus' bewildered reaction when he caught her eating frozen flan jelly in the early morning one day. Not only that, but strawberry-flavoured shoopuf milk and raw oatmeal for lunch. "They all probably just didn't mix."

"…Interesting," she cracked a small smile, stroking her son's small tuft of ginger hair. "I've had days like that as well."

Yuna was about to retort, but stifling a huge yawn was her first priority. She slammed her head down onto the pillow again, struggling to keep her eyes wide. Vidina crawled over the log-shaped mass that was Yuna's lower body.

"Tired?"

"Very," she breathed out, lolling her face over the material to help the fever on her cheeks. "I just didn't get enough sleep, that's all."

She couldn't notice the growing, almost mischievous smile on Lulu's lips. By then, the baby had landed on the other side of the bed and was worryingly close to falling off, but Lulu calmly reached over and cradled him in her arms. Rather than hold onto him however, she placed him near Yuna's side where she then proceeded to pick him up and stare down at him.

"Hey, cutie," she cooed in an overly sweet voice, sticking out a finger for Vidina to play with. He gurgled and squealed happily as her heart melted from the display. Lulu chuckled as she finally took back her son, looking back up at Yuna who was trying to hide the disappointment in her face.

"I'm a little bit happier, Yuna," she said vaguely, her tone much softer than usual. "At least I have no qualms about you taking up the job now."

Her eyebrows furrowed, not understanding what she meant at first. When the question took a few more seconds to register however, her eyes bulged and her hands flew up to her mouth. Tears pooled in her ducts and she began to stammer in astonishment.

"You… You mean—!?"

Lulu nodded; her method of a mutual congratulations.

* * *

"That was _awesome_, ya!?" Wakka jubilantly clapped Tidus on the back, a grin stretching across his entire face as he waved their rightfully earned trophy, the Crystal Cup, around in the darkening sky. Behind them, the rest of the Besaid Aurochs were hollering and whooping, except for poor Keepa; who had to carry around the chest which held their prize money. "Shoulda seen the look on their faces when you did that new Jecht Shot! Never saw it comin'!"

He responded with a nearly soulless laugh, not making an effort to hide his slouch. He was glad that they had won. Really glad. In fact it was some of the most excitement he ever had in his blitzball career, but something was missing from all of that. Or rather, someone. Even though it wasn't his fault, he wasn't going to forgive himself for Yuna's sadness anytime soon.

"Ah, cheer up, ya? So Yuna couldn't come. Nothin' we could do 'bout it!" in all truth, Wakka wasn't the best at reading people's emotions, let alone mending them. Tidus cried out in playful protest at the coach's one-handed headlock as he roared back over his shoulder. "'Ey, boys! Whaddya say we head down to the café for our star player? Free drinks for all us champions, ya!?"

"Sorry Wakka, but I'm not really in the mood," Tidus excused himself, barely audible over the other Aurochs who went zooming down the road, screaming and yelping. "Ya'll just head on without me, all right?"

"Eh, you sure, brudda?" he scratched at his head, thinking that Yuna wasn't the only one who was ill. "Place's got the best ale in all of Spira! 'S normally worth a captain's monthly salary!"

"I don't drink anyway."

"But... Ah, at least come an' collect your hard-earned gil, ya? We still needa share it out."

He resisted the rude urge to roll his eyes, finally giving in and walking with Wakka down to the café. Men and women congratulated them and asked for autographs, which Wakka unfortunately couldn't stand for any longer after a few encounters and ran off. Tidus laughed and pitied him with a shake of his head; the poor man would never get used to being famous.

A little while later, Tidus was strolling down the moonlit city alone, a hefty pile of gil in his bag. Even so, he had no idea what to do with it. Wakka had suggested renting out a luxury hotel room, but the thought of it seemed wasteful to him. Once again, his thoughts drifted back to Yuna. Sure, he had earned them a lot of savings… but would that really pay for the dejectedness that she went through all day?

His head angled further towards the ground. He would do or pay for anything to have Yuna see that final match, no matter how big or small the price.

His ears perked up at the noise coming from his right; he was standing in front of one of the stadium's entrances. The increasing sounds of wheels on concrete and words of urgency foretold the peculiar sight of a large camera, manned by two people: the narrator that made his voice loud and clear all throughout the matches, and another small and chubby man gripping onto the dual handles. The velocity of their effort was greater than he thought, just barely getting out of the way in time. However, the taller of the two men abandoned his post, assumedly to give Tidus a piece of his mind.

"Hey! Watch where you're—!" his throat clenched shut, but his mouth did not. "S—Sir Tidus? The winner of the championship!?"

"I… guess that's me," he unprofessionally rubbed his neck. Before he knew it, his free hand was being shaken up and down by two.

"That was a great show, man! Totally great!" he released it as suddenly as he had taken hold of it, and transitioned to clearing his throat. "Uh… can I have an autograph?"

Tidus had to contain himself before his fan could take it as an offense. He grabbed a spare pen, jotting down his name and an inspirational message on the announcer's notepad, all while eyeing the lonely man and his camera. "Say, what's that big thing?"

"Oh, that's the camera we recorded the matches with," he explained, gratefully taking the autographed sheet. "We're going to the studio to take out the record spheres and display them on the National Blitzball Network. I'd say spherevision's the best thing the Al Bhed's come up with."

"Record sphere, huh?" was his point of interest. Rikku had actually given him and Yuna a spherevision, but all they used it for was for displaying spheres which they already had. They found it too expensive to get network support. An idea crossed his mind at that moment. "Hey, uh… is it possible to copy sphere data and put it onto another sphere?"

"If it's compatible, yeah. Why?"

"I want a personal copy of the final match."

"Did I mention it takes a bit of time… and is mighty expensive if it's for the Network?" he chortled, leaning against the hard wood of the camera's exterior. "Tell ya what, Sir Tidus. Normally I'd refuse to do this, but since I'm your fan, I'll make an exception. Still a lot of gil, but I'll guarantee a copy if you got the—"

"Here," he tossed him the small brown bag that was on his waist, managing to catch it just in time. "My share of the prize money."

As he started talking, the man had his face buried into the bag, each golden piece shocking him more and more. Finally he clenched it tight to his side, beaming as he set Tidus and himself to work. "Perfect! Just perfect! Come on now, if you help me push, we'll get to the studio and your special copy sooner."

* * *

Tidus quietly opened and closed the door behind him, the rooms before him uttering silence. Seeing that Lulu had fortunately chosen the guest room, he set down his belt on the nearby table and carefully removed the brand-new sphere from one of his pouches. Cradling it close to his side, he kicked off his boots and slid into the bedroom, setting his eyes on the peaceful form of his lover. He wondered if he should just wait until the dawn to do this, but his arms and heart spoke against that.

"Yuna…" he whispered repeatedly, gently cupping her head until she stirred. Steadily her eyes fluttered open, widening at the sight in front of her.

"Tidus?" she struggled to keep her voice low as she shifted her body. She was delighted to see him again, but also incredibly confused. "Why are you back so soon?"

He held a finger over his lips, helping her out from the covers and motioning them both to the living-room. Even as she was set down on the couch, she started asking questions but never finished them. Tidus set the sphere in the projector pod, nestling into the couch beside Yuna and fiddling with the remote.

"What are we watching?"

Her curiosity was only piqued by his vast grin and his arm wrapping around her slim waist. "You'll see."

The room was bathed in a faint blue glow as the film played, the beginning shot consisting of rippling navy currents and clusters of voices. The realisation dawned on Yuna as soon as the monotone voice of the narrator made itself known, and soon she was fervently watching the match play out, cheering on the Aurochs as if she was actually in the stands. She didn't care how loud she was being or how she was straining her back. All that mattered at that point was the game.

Tidus kept silent all throughout, not wanting to spoil anything. The only things he did were paying attention to the most exciting parts of the film and watching Yuna's enthusiasm and glee. However the thing that was the most odd to him was the fact that she had one dormant hand on her stomach the entire time. The match ended with Tidus outwitting the opposing team with his Jecht Shot Mark II, and with that, Yuna sunk back into the couch, a look of admiration directed towards him as the screen faded to silent static.

"I… I really wanted you to see what you missed. I kinda gave up what I earned to do it," though unnoticeable in the dark, a tiny blush sprouted on his cheeks as Yuna held his face in her palm. "I know it's not as good as the real thing, but it's the least I could do for you."

She couldn't hold herself back any longer. She threw her arms around his neck and buried her face into his collar, her smile imprinting itself onto his skin. At this very moment, she held nothing but praise, thanks, apologies and affection for this one man. He didn't hesitate to reciprocate, Yuna leaving trails of kisses down his refined jaw.

"Thank you so much," she said sincerely, pulling back and letting a hand rest on his shirt. "I… I honestly don't know how to repay you."

"You're happy and you're not as white as Gagazet anymore. That's all the payment I need," Tidus humbled himself, shifting to face the spherevision again while Yuna laid her head on her shoulder; content. Once again, he was aware of Yuna's hand on her stomach. "Hey, you feeling sick again?"

Following his gaze, her expression changed from one of innocence to seriousness; a lovely smile adorning her lips as she stared back up at him. "No… but I'm feeling something else."

"Hm?"

"This morning. I figured out why I was feeling this way."

Tidus chuckled, pushing his forehead against hers, completely oblivious. "Is it all that weird stuff you ate?"

"Kind of," she twisted around, getting him to hold her from behind. She mounted her legs up onto the armrest and leaned back into him, looking up at his face with her hands on her stomach again. "They're not the only things inside of me right now."

His eyebrows furrowed, not understanding what she meant at first. When the question took a few more seconds to register however, his eyes expanded and his entire body went taut.

"You… you mean…"

Yuna nodded, biting down on her lip as her eyes twinkled. "We're expecting."

Within an hour the dawn came, golden rays shining through the cottage windows. Lulu, woken by the earlier events, snaked the length to the door with Vidina in her arms. Before heading back to her house however, she peeked into the living-room. She was greeted with the sleeping sights of Tidus and Yuna, the latter nestled in-between the former's legs, both pairs of hand latched onto her stomach. A genuine smile broke out over Lulu's face as she shifted her son around, ceasing the noises he was making.

"Good luck next year."


End file.
